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True Detective on HBO - Matthew McConaughey Wanted Frightening Roles

Matthew McConaughey is now starring in HBO's critically acclaimed True Detective and has revealed he was at a spot in his career where he wanted to take on roles that ''scare'' him.

Matthew McConaughey plays Det. Rustin "Rust" Cohle on True Detective on HBO and his role has been exciting and a bit scary as he and partner Woody Harrelson (Det. Martin Hart) chase a serial killer in Louisiana in the 1990s.

Check the eight series special out on HBO (it airs on Sunday nights).

Besides Matthew's new role in True Detective as Rust, he has taken on movie roles that are a bit scary as well.

The actor, who has been nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of a real-life AIDS victim in 'Dallas Buyers Club', made a conscious decision not to take a part in another romantic comedy, after appearing in 'How To Lose a Guy In 10 Days' and 'Failure to Launch'.

He told Time Out London magazine: ''I'm not going to carry on doing the same thing over and over. I was reading romantic comedies. And I liked them. But I wanted to do something that scares me a little bit.

''The first move was saying 'no' to scripts. That was six months of 'no' and then a year of nothing. And something happened. I gained anonymity and suddenly it became a good idea for William Friedkin [director] to call about 'Killer Joe' or Steven Soderbergh about 'Magic Mike'.''

The 44-year-old star admits it was difficult not working for so long but he found comfort in his family, spending time with his wife Camila and their children, 13-month-old Livingston, Vida, four, and Levi, five.

When asked if he got the jitters not acting, he replied: ''A little bit. But I hunkered down with my wife. And I had a son come into the world. When I got anxious, I could be like: shepherding my newborn son is a great thing to be doing.

''If it hadn't been for my son, I'd have been more antsy for sure. I look at all this as switching gear: same book, different chapter. I could have done some of these roles five or ten years ago. I didn't. I had a nice run there. I enjoyed those romcoms. So they didn't get critical acclaim. That's not my concern. Now I've started doing this and I'm enjoying it. People are going, 'We like him.' ''